Container structure with builtin heatsink for housing a sensor unit of an autonomous driving vehicle

ABSTRACT

A sensor unit utilized in an autonomous driving vehicle (ADV) includes a unit tray containing a sensor interface, a host interface, and one or more sensor processing modules. The sensor interface can be coupled to a variety of sensors used in the ADV, such as, for example, LIDAR, RADAR, cameras, etc., which may be mounted on different locations of the ADV. The host interface can be coupled a host system that is responsible for autonomously driving the vehicle. The host system is configured to perceive a driving environment surrounding the ADV base on sensor data obtained from the sensors and plan a path to autonomously drive the vehicle through the driving environment. The sensor processing modules are configured to process the sensor data obtained from the sensors.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to autonomousDRIVING vehicles. More particularly, embodiments of the disclosurerelate to a sensor system of an autonomous driving vehicle.

BACKGROUND

Vehicles operating in an autonomous mode (e.g., driverless) can relieveoccupants, especially the driver, from some driving-relatedresponsibilities. When operating in an autonomous mode, the vehicle cannavigate to various locations using onboard sensors, allowing thevehicle to travel with minimal human interaction or in some caseswithout any passengers.

Motion planning and control are critical operations in autonomousdriving. The accuracy and efficiency of the motion planning and controldepends heavily on the sensors of the vehicle. Different sensors mayhave different requirements or specifications. Typically, an autonomousvehicle has a centralized computing chassis that connects to all sensorsand actuators on a car. A sensor unit is utilized to connect a hostsystem to the sensors. The sensor unit typically includes one or moresensor processing modules. These sensor processing modules can generatesignificant heat. It is challenging to design a container of the sensorunit to efficiently remove the heat from the sensor unit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the disclosure are illustrated by way of example and notlimitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which likereferences indicate similar elements.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a networked system according toone embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of an autonomousvehicle according to one embodiment.

FIG. 3 are block diagrams illustrating an example of a perception andplanning system used with an autonomous vehicle according to oneembodiment.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a sensor unitaccording to one embodiment.

FIGS. 5A and 5B show a perspective view of a sensor unit according toone embodiment.

FIGS. 6A-6D show a top view, side views, and a bottom view of a sensorunit respectively according to one embodiment.

FIG. 7 shows an exploded view of a sensor unit according to oneembodiment.

FIG. 8 shows an internal surface of a unit cover of a sensor unitaccording to one embodiment.

FIG. 9 shows an internal surface of a base plate of a sensor unitaccording to one embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various embodiments and aspects of the disclosures will be describedwith reference to details discussed below, and the accompanying drawingswill illustrate the various embodiments. The following description anddrawings are illustrative of the disclosure and are not to be construedas limiting the disclosure. Numerous specific details are described toprovide a thorough understanding of various embodiments of the presentdisclosure. However, in certain instances, well-known or conventionaldetails are not described in order to provide a concise discussion ofembodiments of the present disclosures.

Reference in the specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment”means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic describedin conjunction with the embodiment can be included in at least oneembodiment of the disclosure. The appearances of the phrase “in oneembodiment” in various places in the specification do not necessarilyall refer to the same embodiment.

According to one aspect, a sensor unit utilized in an autonomous drivingvehicle (ADV) includes a unit tray containing a sensor interface, a hostinterface, and one or more sensor processing modules. The sensorinterface can be coupled to a variety of sensors used in the ADV, suchas, for example, LIDAR, RADAR, cameras, etc., which may be mounted ondifferent locations of the ADV. The host interface can be coupled a hostsystem that is responsible for autonomously driving the vehicle. Thehost system is configured to perceive a driving environment surroundingthe ADV base on sensor data obtained from the sensors and plan a path toautonomously drive the vehicle through the driving environment. Thesensor processing modules are configured to process the sensor dataobtained from the sensors.

The sensor unit further includes a unit base plate (e.g., a bottomportion) and a unit cover (e.g., a top portion) to form a container tohouse the unit tray therein. The unit cover includes a number of finsdisposed on an external surface of the unit cover to form a built-inheat sink integrated with the unit cover. The integrated heatsink is toreceive the heat generated from the sensor unit tray (e.g., sensorprocessing modules) and to radiate the heat to the ambient environmentwithout having to use a cooling fan. The unit cover is made from heatconductive material.

In one embodiment, the sensor unit cover further includes a first set ofone or more heat transfer arms or beams disposed on an internal surfaceof the unit cover. The heat transfer arms extend downwardly from theinternal surface to receive the heat generated from the heat generatingcomponents and to transfer the heat to the fins of the unit cover on theexternal surface. Specifically, when the unit cover is lowered down tocover the unit tray, the heat transfer arms are positioned tosubstantially contact the external surfaces of the heat generatingcomponents, such as the sensor processing modules or memory, of the unittray. The heat transfer arms can receive at least a portion of the heatvia direct contact and transfer the heat to the fins on the externalsurface, which in turns radiate the heat to the ambient environment. Inone embodiment, the heat transfer arms are disposed on the internalsurface of the unit cover directly underneath the fins on the externalsurface of the unit cover.

According to another embodiment, the base plate includes a second set ofone or more heat transfer arms disposed on the top surface of the baseplate, i.e., the surface that faces the unit tray. The heat transferarms of the second set extend upwardly from the top surface The unittray includes a printed circuit board (PCB) that allow some componentsto be mounted or soldered on the top side of the PCB and the bottom sideof the PCB. When the unit tray is deposited on the unit base plate, theheat transfer arms of the second set substantially contact an externalsurface of the heat generating components disposed on the bottom surfaceof the PCB to receive and transfer the heat to the base plate.

According to one embodiment, the unit tray further includes a firstmounting plate and a second mounting plate mounted on a first side and asecond side opposite to the first side of the PCB to form a tray. Thesensor processing modules may be mounted on both the top side and bottomside of the PCB. An array of sensor connectors may be mounted on an edgeof the first side and the second side of the PCB. The sensor connectorsmay be utilized to connect the components of the unit tray to thesensors, for example, via cables. In one embodiment, the first mountingplate and the second mounting plate are perpendicularly mounted to theedges of the PCB. That is, the surface planes of the mounting plates areparallel to each other, but are perpendicular to the surface plane ofthe PCB, forming a U-shape tray.

In one embodiment, each of the mounting plates includes one or moreopenings to allow at least some of the sensor connectors to be exposedto external to the sensor unit cover to couple with the sensors. Theunit cover is molded into a single piece with the fins as a part ofbuilt-in heat sink. The unit cover is further molded into a reversedU-shape to complement the U-shape of the unit tray when the unit covercovers the unit tray.

According to another aspect, an autonomous driving system includes anumber of sensors mounted on various locations of an ADV and a hostsystem. The host system includes a perception module and a planning andcontrol module, wherein the perception module is to perceive a drivingenvironment surrounding the ADV based on sensor data obtained from thesensors, and wherein the planning and control module is to plan a pathto autonomously drive the ADV. The autonomous driving system furtherincludes a sensor unit coupled to the plurality of sensors and the hostsystem as described above.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an autonomous vehicle networkconfiguration according to one embodiment of the disclosure. Referringto FIG. 1, network configuration 100 includes autonomous vehicle 101that may be communicatively coupled to one or more servers 103-104 overa network 102. Although there is one autonomous vehicle shown, multipleautonomous vehicles can be coupled to each other and/or coupled toservers 103-104 over network 102. Network 102 may be any type ofnetworks such as a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN)such as the Internet, a cellular network, a satellite network, or acombination thereof, wired or wireless. Server(s) 103-104 may be anykind of servers or a cluster of servers, such as Web or cloud servers,application servers, backend servers, or a combination thereof. Servers103-104 may be data analytics servers, content servers, trafficinformation servers, map and point of interest (MPOI) severs, orlocation servers, etc.

An autonomous vehicle refers to a vehicle that can be configured to inan autonomous mode in which the vehicle navigates through an environmentwith little or no input from a driver. Such an autonomous vehicle caninclude a sensor system having one or more sensors that are configuredto detect information about the environment in which the vehicleoperates. The vehicle and its associated controller(s) use the detectedinformation to navigate through the environment. Autonomous vehicle 101can operate in a manual mode, a full autonomous mode, or a partialautonomous mode.

In one embodiment, autonomous vehicle 101 includes, but is not limitedto, perception and planning system 110, vehicle control system 111,wireless communication system 112, user interface system 113,infotainment system 114, and sensor system 115. Autonomous vehicle 101may further include certain common components included in ordinaryvehicles, such as, an engine, wheels, steering wheel, transmission,etc., which may be controlled by vehicle control system 111 and/orperception and planning system 110 using a variety of communicationsignals and/or commands, such as, for example, acceleration signals orcommands, deceleration signals or commands, steering signals orcommands, braking signals or commands, etc.

Components 110-115 may be communicatively coupled to each other via aninterconnect, a bus, a network, or a combination thereof. For example,components 110-115 may be communicatively coupled to each other via acontroller area network (CAN) bus. A CAN bus is a vehicle bus standarddesigned to allow microcontrollers and devices to communicate with eachother in applications without a host computer. It is a message-basedprotocol, designed originally for multiplex electrical wiring withinautomobiles, but is also used in many other contexts.

Referring now to FIG. 2, in one embodiment, sensor system 115 includes,but it is not limited to, one or more cameras 211, global positioningsystem (GPS) unit 212, inertial measurement unit (IMU) 213, radar unit214, and a light detection and range (LIDAR) unit 215. GPS system 212may include a transceiver operable to provide information regarding theposition of the autonomous vehicle. IMU unit 213 may sense position andorientation changes of the autonomous vehicle based on inertialacceleration. Radar unit 214 may represent a system that utilizes radiosignals to sense objects within the local environment of the autonomousvehicle. In some embodiments, in addition to sensing objects, radar unit214 may additionally sense the speed and/or heading of the objects.LIDAR unit 215 may sense objects in the environment in which theautonomous vehicle is located using lasers. LIDAR unit 215 could includeone or more laser sources, a laser scanner, and one or more detectors,among other system components. Cameras 211 may include one or moredevices to capture images of the environment surrounding the autonomousvehicle. Cameras 211 may be still cameras and/or video cameras. A cameramay be mechanically movable, for example, by mounting the camera on arotating and/or tilting a platform.

Sensor system 115 may further include other sensors, such as, a sonarsensor, an infrared sensor, a steering sensor, a throttle sensor, abraking sensor, and an audio sensor (e.g., microphone). An audio sensormay be configured to capture sound from the environment surrounding theautonomous vehicle. A steering sensor may be configured to sense thesteering angle of a steering wheel, wheels of the vehicle, or acombination thereof. A throttle sensor and a braking sensor sense thethrottle position and braking position of the vehicle, respectively. Insome situations, a throttle sensor and a braking sensor may beintegrated as an integrated throttle/braking sensor.

In one embodiment, vehicle control system 111 includes, but is notlimited to, steering unit 201, throttle unit 202 (also referred to as anacceleration unit), and braking unit 203. Steering unit 201 is to adjustthe direction or heading of the vehicle. Throttle unit 202 is to controlthe speed of the motor or engine that in turn controls the speed andacceleration of the vehicle. Braking unit 203 is to decelerate thevehicle by providing friction to slow the wheels or tires of thevehicle. Note that the components as shown in FIG. 2 may be implementedin hardware, software, or a combination thereof.

Referring back to FIG. 1, wireless communication system 112 is to allowcommunication between autonomous vehicle 101 and external systems, suchas devices, sensors, other vehicles, etc. For example, wirelesscommunication system 112 can wirelessly communicate with one or moredevices directly or via a communication network, such as servers 103-104over network 102. Wireless communication system 112 can use any cellularcommunication network or a wireless local area network (WLAN), e.g.,using WiFi to communicate with another component or system. Wirelesscommunication system 112 could communicate directly with a device (e.g.,a mobile device of a passenger, a display device, a speaker withinvehicle 101), for example, using an infrared link, Bluetooth, etc. Userinterface system 113 may be part of peripheral devices implementedwithin vehicle 101 including, for example, a keyboard, a touch screendisplay device, a microphone, and a speaker, etc.

Some or all of the functions of autonomous vehicle 101 may be controlledor managed by perception and planning system 110, especially whenoperating in an autonomous driving mode. Perception and planning system110 includes the necessary hardware (e.g., processor(s), memory,storage) and software (e.g., operating system, planning and routingprograms) to receive information from sensor system 115, control system111, wireless communication system 112, and/or user interface system113, process the received information, plan a route or path from astarting point to a destination point, and then drive vehicle 101 basedon the planning and control information. Alternatively, perception andplanning system 110 may be integrated with vehicle control system 111.

For example, a user as a passenger may specify a starting location and adestination of a trip, for example, via a user interface. Perception andplanning system 110 obtains the trip related data. For example,perception and planning system 110 may obtain location and routeinformation from an MPOI server, which may be a part of servers 103-104.The location server provides location services and the MPOI serverprovides map services and the POIs of certain locations. Alternatively,such location and MPOI information may be cached locally in a persistentstorage device of perception and planning system 110.

While autonomous vehicle 101 is moving along the route, perception andplanning system 110 may also obtain real-time traffic information from atraffic information system or server (TIS). Note that servers 103-104may be operated by a third party entity. Alternatively, thefunctionalities of servers 103-104 may be integrated with perception andplanning system 110. Based on the real-time traffic information, MPOIinformation, and location information, as well as real-time localenvironment data detected or sensed by sensor system 115 (e.g.,obstacles, objects, nearby vehicles), perception and planning system 110can plan an optimal route and drive vehicle 101, for example, viacontrol system 111, according to the planned route to reach thespecified destination safely and efficiently.

Server 103 may be a data analytics system to perform data analyticsservices for a variety of clients. In one embodiment, data analyticssystem 103 includes data collector 121 and machine learning engine 122.Data collector 121 collects driving statistics 123 from a variety ofvehicles, either autonomous vehicles or regular vehicles driven by humandrivers. Driving statistics 123 include information indicating thedriving commands (e.g., throttle, brake, steering commands) issued andresponses of the vehicles (e.g., speeds, accelerations, decelerations,directions) captured by sensors of the vehicles at different points intime. Driving statistics 123 may further include information describingthe driving environments at different points in time, such as, forexample, routes (including starting and destination locations), MPOIs,road conditions, weather conditions, etc.

Based on driving statistics 123, machine learning engine 122 generatesor trains a set of rules, algorithms, and/or predictive models 124 for avariety of purposes. In one embodiment, algorithms 124 may include rulesor algorithms for perception, prediction, decision, planning, and/orcontrol processes, which will be described in details further below.Algorithms 124 can then be uploaded on ADVs to be utilized duringautonomous driving in real-time.

FIG. 3 are block diagrams illustrating an example of a perception andplanning system used with an autonomous vehicle according to oneembodiment. System 300 may be implemented as a part of autonomousvehicle 101 of FIG. 1 including, but is not limited to, perception andplanning system 110, control system 111, and sensor system 115.Referring to FIG. 3, perception and planning system 110 includes, but isnot limited to, localization module 301, perception module 302,prediction module 303, decision module 304, planning module 305, controlmodule 306, and routing module 307.

Some or all of modules 301-307 may be implemented in software, hardware,or a combination thereof. For example, these modules may be installed inpersistent storage device 352, loaded into memory 351, and executed byone or more processors (not shown). Note that some or all of thesemodules may be communicatively coupled to or integrated with some or allmodules of vehicle control system 111 of FIG. 2. Some of modules 301-307may be integrated together as an integrated module.

Localization module 301 determines a current location of autonomousvehicle 300 (e.g., leveraging GPS unit 212) and manages any data relatedto a trip or route of a user. Localization module 301 (also referred toas a map and route module) manages any data related to a trip or routeof a user. A user may log in and specify a starting location and adestination of a trip, for example, via a user interface. Localizationmodule 301 communicates with other components of autonomous vehicle 300,such as map and route information 311, to obtain the trip related data.For example, localization module 301 may obtain location and routeinformation from a location server and a map and POI (MPOI) server. Alocation server provides location services and an MPOI server providesmap services and the POIs of certain locations, which may be cached aspart of map and route information 311. While autonomous vehicle 300 ismoving along the route, localization module 301 may also obtainreal-time traffic information from a traffic information system orserver.

Based on the sensor data provided by sensor system 115 and localizationinformation obtained by localization module 301, a perception of thesurrounding environment is determined by perception module 302. Theperception information may represent what an ordinary driver wouldperceive surrounding a vehicle in which the driver is driving. Theperception can include the lane configuration, traffic light signals, arelative position of another vehicle, a pedestrian, a building,crosswalk, or other traffic related signs (e.g., stop signs, yieldsigns), etc., for example, in a form of an object. The laneconfiguration includes information describing a lane or lanes, such as,for example, a shape of the lane (e.g., straight or curvature), a widthof the lane, how many lanes in a road, one-way or two-way lane, mergingor splitting lanes, exiting lane, etc.

Perception module 302 may include a computer vision system orfunctionalities of a computer vision system to process and analyzeimages captured by one or more cameras in order to identify objectsand/or features in the environment of autonomous vehicle. The objectscan include traffic signals, road way boundaries, other vehicles,pedestrians, and/or obstacles, etc. The computer vision system may usean object recognition algorithm, video tracking, and other computervision techniques. In some embodiments, the computer vision system canmap an environment, track objects, and estimate the speed of objects,etc. Perception module 302 can also detect objects based on othersensors data provided by other sensors such as a radar and/or LIDAR.

For each of the objects, prediction module 303 predicts what the objectwill behave under the circumstances. The prediction is performed basedon the perception data perceiving the driving environment at the pointin time in view of a set of map/rout information 311 and traffic rules312. For example, if the object is a vehicle at an opposing directionand the current driving environment includes an intersection, predictionmodule 303 will predict whether the vehicle will likely move straightforward or make a turn. If the perception data indicates that theintersection has no traffic light, prediction module 303 may predictthat the vehicle may have to fully stop prior to enter the intersection.If the perception data indicates that the vehicle is currently at aleft-turn only lane or a right-turn only lane, prediction module 303 maypredict that the vehicle will more likely make a left turn or right turnrespectively.

For each of the objects, decision module 304 makes a decision regardinghow to handle the object. For example, for a particular object (e.g.,another vehicle in a crossing route) as well as its metadata describingthe object (e.g., a speed, direction, turning angle), decision module304 decides how to encounter the object (e.g., overtake, yield, stop,pass). Decision module 304 may make such decisions according to a set ofrules such as traffic rules or driving rules 312, which may be stored inpersistent storage device 352.

Routing module 307 is configured to provide one or more routes or pathsfrom a starting point to a destination point. For a given trip from astart location to a destination location, for example, received from auser, routing module 307 obtains route and map information 311 anddetermines all possible routes or paths from the starting location toreach the destination location. Routing module 307 may generate areference line in a form of a topographic map for each of the routes itdetermines from the starting location to reach the destination location.A reference line refers to an ideal route or path without anyinterference from others such as other vehicles, obstacles, or trafficcondition. That is, if there is no other vehicle, pedestrians, orobstacles on the road, an ADV should exactly or closely follows thereference line. The topographic maps are then provided to decisionmodule 304 and/or planning module 305. Decision module 304 and/orplanning module 305 examine all of the possible routes to select andmodify one of the most optimal routes in view of other data provided byother modules such as traffic conditions from localization module 301,driving environment perceived by perception module 302, and trafficcondition predicted by prediction module 303. The actual path or routefor controlling the ADV may be close to or different from the referenceline provided by routing module 307 dependent upon the specific drivingenvironment at the point in time.

Based on a decision for each of the objects perceived, planning module305 plans a path or route for the autonomous vehicle, as well as drivingparameters (e.g., distance, speed, and/or turning angle), using areference line provided by routing module 307 as a basis. That is, for agiven object, decision module 304 decides what to do with the object,while planning module 305 determines how to do it. For example, for agiven object, decision module 304 may decide to pass the object, whileplanning module 305 may determine whether to pass on the left side orright side of the object. Planning and control data is generated byplanning module 305 including information describing how vehicle 300would move in a next moving cycle (e.g., next route/path segment). Forexample, the planning and control data may instruct vehicle 300 to move10 meters at a speed of 30 mile per hour (mph), then change to a rightlane at the speed of 25 mph.

Based on the planning and control data, control module 306 controls anddrives the autonomous vehicle, by sending proper commands or signals tovehicle control system 111, according to a route or path defined by theplanning and control data. The planning and control data includesufficient information to drive the vehicle from a first point to asecond point of a route or path using appropriate vehicle settings ordriving parameters (e.g., throttle, braking, steering commands) atdifferent points in time along the path or route.

In one embodiment, the planning phase is performed in a number ofplanning cycles, also referred to as driving cycles, such as, forexample, in every time interval of 100 milliseconds (ms). For each ofthe planning cycles or driving cycles, one or more control commands willbe issued based on the planning and control data. That is, for every 100ms, planning module 305 plans a next route segment or path segment, forexample, including a target position and the time required for the ADVto reach the target position. Alternatively, planning module 305 mayfurther specify the specific speed, direction, and/or steering angle,etc. In one embodiment, planning module 305 plans a route segment orpath segment for the next predetermined period of time such as 5seconds. For each planning cycle, planning module 305 plans a targetposition for the current cycle (e.g., next 5 seconds) based on a targetposition planned in a previous cycle. Control module 306 then generatesone or more control commands (e.g., throttle, brake, steering controlcommands) based on the planning and control data of the current cycle.

Note that decision module 304 and planning module 305 may be integratedas an integrated module. Decision module 304/planning module 305 mayinclude a navigation system or functionalities of a navigation system todetermine a driving path for the autonomous vehicle. For example, thenavigation system may determine a series of speeds and directionalheadings to affect movement of the autonomous vehicle along a path thatsubstantially avoids perceived obstacles while generally advancing theautonomous vehicle along a roadway-based path leading to an ultimatedestination. The destination may be set according to user inputs viauser interface system 113. The navigation system may update the drivingpath dynamically while the autonomous vehicle is in operation. Thenavigation system can incorporate data from a GPS system and one or moremaps so as to determine the driving path for the autonomous vehicle.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a sensor systemaccording to one embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 4,sensor system 115 includes a number of sensors 410 and a sensor unit 400coupled to host system 110. Host system 110 represents a planning andcontrol system as described above, which may include at least some ofthe modules as shown in FIG. 3. Sensor unit 400 may be implemented in aform of an FPGA device or an ASIC (application specific integratedcircuit) device. In one embodiment, sensor unit 400 includes, amongstothers, one or more sensor data processing modules 401 (also simplyreferred to as sensor processing modules), data transfer modules 402,sensor control modules or logic 403, and time module 420. Modules401-403 and 420 can communicate with sensors 410A-410C (collectivelyreferred to as sensors 410) via a sensor interface 404 and communicatewith host system 110 via host interface 405. Optionally, an internal orexternal buffer 406 may be utilized for buffering the data forprocessing.

In one embodiment, for the receiving path or upstream direction, sensorprocessing module 401 is configured to receive sensor data from a sensorvia sensor interface 404 and process the sensor data (e.g., formatconversion, error checking), which may be temporarily stored in buffer406. Data transfer module 402 is configured to transfer the processeddata to host system 110 using a communication protocol compatible withhost interface 405. Similarly, for the transmitting path or downstreamdirection, data transfer module 402 is configured to receive data orcommands from host system 110. The data is then processed by sensorprocessing module 401 to a format that is compatible with thecorresponding sensor. The processed data is then transmitted to thesensor.

In one embodiment, sensor control module or logic 403 is configured tocontrol certain operations of sensors 410, such as, for example, timingof activation of capturing sensor data, in response to commands receivedfrom host system (e.g., perception module 302) via host interface 405.Host system 110 can configure sensors 410 to capture sensor data in acollaborative and/or synchronized manner, such that the sensor data canbe utilized to perceive a driving environment surrounding the vehicle atany point in time.

In one embodiment, time module 420 is configured to generate timestampsfor the sensor processing module 401 and the sensor control module 403,referred to as receiving timestamps and transmitting timestamps. Thereceiving timestamps are utilized by the sensor processing module 401 toprocess the sensor data received from the sensors in a controlled timingmanner. Similarly, the transmitting timestamps are utilized by thesensor control module 403 to control the sensors in a controlled timingmanner. The transmitting timestamps and the receiving timestamps allowthe system to synchronize in time the control commands issued to thesensors and the sensor data captured and received from the sensors inresponse to the control commands. The time module 420 is configuredgenerate time based on GPS signals received from a GPS sensor or pulseper second (PPS) and GPRMC signals received from a GNSS received via thesensor interface. When the GPS or the PPSGPRMC signals are unavailable,the time module 420 is configured to derive time from other time sources(e.g., host system or a remote device over a network).

Sensor interface 404 can include one or more of Ethernet, USB (universalserial bus), LTE (long term evolution) or cellular, WiFi, GPS, camera,CAN, serial (e.g., universal asynchronous receiver transmitter or UART),SIM (subscriber identification module) card, and other general purposeinput/output (GPIO) interfaces. Host interface 405 may be any high speedor high bandwidth interface such as PCIe (peripheral componentinterconnect or PCI express) interface. Sensors 410 can include avariety of sensors that are utilized in an autonomous driving vehicle,such as, for example, a camera, a LIDAR device, a RADAR device, a GPSreceiver, an IMU, an ultrasonic sensor, a GNSS (global navigationsatellite system) receiver, an LTE or cellular SIM card, vehicle sensors(e.g., throttle, brake, steering sensors), and system sensors (e.g.,temperature, humidity, pressure sensors), etc.

For example, a camera can be coupled via an Ethernet or a GPIOinterface. A GPS sensor can be coupled via a USB or a specific GPSinterface. Vehicle sensors can be coupled via a CAN interface. A RADARsensor or an ultrasonic sensor can be coupled via a GPIO interface. ALIDAR device can be coupled via an Ethernet interface. An external SIMmodule can be coupled via an LTE interface. Similarly, an internal SIMmodule can be inserted onto a SIM socket of sensor unit 400. The serialinterface such as UART can be coupled with a console system for debugpurposes.

Note that sensors 410 can be any kind of sensors and provided by variousvendors or suppliers. Sensor processing module 401 is configured tohandle different types of sensors and their respective data formats andcommunication protocols. According to one embodiment, each of sensors410 is associated with a specific channel for processing sensor data andtransferring the processed sensor data between host system 110 and thecorresponding sensor. Each channel includes a specific sensor processingmodule and a specific data transfer module that have been configured orprogrammed to handle the corresponding sensor data and protocol.

FIGS. 5A and 5B show perspective view of a sensor unit according to oneembodiment. Sensor unit 500 may represent sensor unit 400 of FIG. 4.Referring to FIGS. 5A and 5B, sensor unit 500 includes unit cover 501and base plate 502 to house a unit tray therein, where the unit trayincludes a first mounting plate 503 and a second mounting plate 504 (notshown) to expose sensor connectors of sensor unit 500 to be coupled to avariety of sensors. The sensor interface may include, for example, GPSsensor interface 511, camera interface 512, Ethernet interface 513, aswell as the ignition connector 514 coupled to the ignition of thevehicle for power on and power off. In one embodiment, an externalsurface of unit cover 501 includes an array of fins integrated thereinto form a heatsink to radiate the heat generated from the sensor unit.The heatsink is molded as a part of unit cover 501 as a built-inheatsink.

FIG. 6A shows a top view of the sensor unit. FIGS. 6B and 6C show sideviews of the sensor unit. FIG. 6D shows a bottom view of the sensorunit. Referring to FIG. 6C, on this side 504, an array of sensorconnectors are disposed, including USB connector 515, PPS/GPRMCconnector 517, LIDAR connector 518, and CAN connector 519. In addition,a host interface, in this example, PCIe connector(s) 516, can beutilized to couple the sensor unit to planning and control system 110.

FIG. 7 shows an exploded view of a sensor unit according to oneembodiment. Referring to FIG. 7, a sensor unit includes unit cover 501and base plate 502 forming a sensor unit container to contain unit tray520 therein. In one embodiment, tray unit 520 includes a PCB 522 havingthe sensor processing components soldered thereon, such as, for example,sensor processing module or processor 525 and memory 530. Sensorprocessing module 525 can be implemented in a variety of form factorsincluding an FPGA or ASIC, etc. The sensor processing components can besoldered or attached on both sides of PCB 522. Mounting plate 503 isattached or mounted to a first side of PCB 522 and mounting plate 504 isattached to or mounted to a second side of PCB 522, which is opposite tothe first side. The mounting plates 503 and 504 are perpendicularlymounted onto the edges of PCB 522. That is, the surface planes ofmounting plates of mounting plates 503-504 are perpendicular to thesurface plane of PCB 522, while the surface planes of mounting 503-504are parallel to each other.

The unit tray 520 can then be deposited onto base plate 502. PCB 522 cansit on top and be supported by a number of stands such as stands531-534. PCB 522 can further be fixedly mounted on the stands using ascrew through a hole of PCB 522, such as screw hole 535. The unit tray520 can then mounted to unit cover 501 and base plate 502, for example,using screw 541 screwed onto a threaded nut 542 and using screw 543 ontothreaded nut 544.

FIG. 8 shows an internal surface of a unit cover according to oneembodiment. Referring to FIG. 8, in one embodiment, one or more heattransfer arms 551-554 are disposed on the internal surface of unit cover501. The heat transfer arms 551-554 are positioned extending todownwardly to receive the heat generated from the sensor processingcomponents of the sensor unit such as processing module 525 and memorychip 530. When unit cover 501 is lowered to cover unit tray 520, theheat transfer arms 551-554 substantially contact the corresponding heatgenerating components (e.g., sensor processing components) to receivethe heat generated from the heat generating components and to transferthe heat to the unit cover 501. The heat can then be transferred to thefins disposed on the external surface of unit cover 501 and radiated tothe ambient environment, without having to use a cooling fan. In oneembodiment, the heat transfer arms 551-554 are disposed on directlyunderneath the fins of the external surface, such that the heat can betransferred to the fins quickly. The internal surface of unit cover 501is molded into a specific shape (e.g., uneven surface) to accommodatethe size and dimension of the components of unit tray 520, whilemaximizing the heat dissipation surface of the unit cover 502 byconfiguring more fins on the external surface.

FIG. 9 shows an internal surface of a base plate according to oneembodiment. Referring to FIG. 9, similar to the heat transfer armsdisposed on the internal surface of unit cover 501, one or more heattransfer arms 561-562 may be disposed on the internal surface of baseplate 502. The heat transfer arms 561-562 may be utilized to transferthe heat generated from the heat generating components disposed on thebottom of PCB 522 of unit tray 520. When unit tray 520 is deposited ontobase plate 502, heat transfer arms 561-562 may substantially contact theexternal surface of the heat generating components to receive andtransfer the heat to base plate 502.

Some portions of the preceding detailed descriptions have been presentedin terms of algorithms and symbolic representations of operations ondata bits within a computer memory. These algorithmic descriptions andrepresentations are the ways used by those skilled in the dataprocessing arts to most effectively convey the substance of their workto others skilled in the art. An algorithm is here, and generally,conceived to be a self-consistent sequence of operations leading to adesired result. The operations are those requiring physicalmanipulations of physical quantities.

It should be borne in mind, however, that all of these and similar termsare to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and aremerely convenient labels applied to these quantities. Unlessspecifically stated otherwise as apparent from the above discussion, itis appreciated that throughout the description, discussions utilizingterms such as those set forth in the claims below, refer to the actionand processes of a computer system, or similar electronic computingdevice, that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical(electronic) quantities within the computer system's registers andmemories into other data similarly represented as physical quantitieswithin the computer system memories or registers or other suchinformation storage, transmission or display devices.

Embodiments of the disclosure also relate to an apparatus for performingthe operations herein. Such a computer program is stored in anon-transitory computer readable medium. A machine-readable mediumincludes any mechanism for storing information in a form readable by amachine (e.g., a computer). For example, a machine-readable (e.g.,computer-readable) medium includes a machine (e.g., a computer) readablestorage medium (e.g., read only memory (“ROM”), random access memory(“RAM”), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, flashmemory devices).

The processes or methods depicted in the preceding figures may beperformed by processing logic that comprises hardware (e.g. circuitry,dedicated logic, etc.), software (e.g., embodied on a non-transitorycomputer readable medium), or a combination of both. Although theprocesses or methods are described above in terms of some sequentialoperations, it should be appreciated that some of the operationsdescribed may be performed in a different order. Moreover, someoperations may be performed in parallel rather than sequentially.

Embodiments of the present disclosure are not described with referenceto any particular programming language. It will be appreciated that avariety of programming languages may be used to implement the teachingsof embodiments of the disclosure as described herein.

In the foregoing specification, embodiments of the disclosure have beendescribed with reference to specific exemplary embodiments thereof. Itwill be evident that various modifications may be made thereto withoutdeparting from the broader spirit and scope of the disclosure as setforth in the following claims. The specification and drawings are,accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative sense rather than arestrictive sense.

1. A sensor unit utilized in an autonomous driving vehicle, the sensorunit comprising: a unit tray including mounted therein, a sensorinterface to be coupled to a plurality of sensors mounted on a pluralityof locations of an autonomous driving vehicle (ADV), a host interface tobe coupled to a host system, wherein the host system is configured toperceive a driving environment surrounding the ADV based on sensor dataobtained from the sensors and to plan a path to autonomously drive theADV, and one or more processing modules coupled to the sensor interfaceto process sensor data received from the sensors; a unit base plate toreceive the unit tray deposited thereon; and a unit cover to cover theunit tray and the unit base plate, wherein the unit cover comprises aplurality of fins disposed on an external surface of the unit cover toform a heat sink integrated thereon to radiate heat generated andreceived from the sensor processing modules without using a fans,wherein the unit cover is made of a heat conductive material.
 2. Thesensor unit of claim 1, wherein the unit cover further comprises a firstset of one or more heat transfer arms disposed on an internal surface ofthe unit cover, and wherein the heat transfer arms of the first setextend downwardly to receive the heat generated from the processingmodules and to transfer the heat to the plurality of fins disposed onthe external surface.
 3. The sensor unit of claim 2, wherein when theunit cover is lowered down to cover the unit tray, the heat transferarms are positioned to substantially contact external surfaces of theprocessing modules to receive and transfer at least a portion of theheat generated by the processing modules.
 4. The sensor unit of claim 3,wherein the one or more heat transfer arms are disposed on the internalsurface of the unit cover directly underneath at least a portion of thefins disposed on the external surface of the unit cover.
 5. The sensorunit of claim 1, wherein the unit base plate further comprises a secondset of one or more heat transfer arms disposed on an internal surface ofthe unit base plate, and wherein the heat transfer arms of the secondset extend upwardly to receive the heat generated from the processingmodules and to transfer the heat to the base plate.
 6. The sensor unitof claim 5, wherein when the unit tray is deposited onto the unit baseplate, the heat transfer arms are positioned to substantially contactexternal surfaces of the processing modules to receive and transfer atleast a portion of the heat generated by the processing modules.
 7. Thesensor unit of claim 1, wherein the unit tray further comprises: aprinted circuit board (PCB) having soldered thereon the processingmodules and a plurality of sensor connectors as a part of the sensorinterface and the host interface; a first mounting plate perpendicularlymounted to a first side of the PCB; and a second mounting plateperpendicularly mounted to a second side of the PCB, wherein the secondside is opposite to the first side.
 8. The sensor unit of claim 7,wherein the unit tray is mounted to the unit base plate and the unitcover by mounting the first mounting plate and the second mounting plateonto the unit base plate and the unit cover.
 9. The sensor unit of claim7, wherein the first mounting plate comprises a plurality of openings toexpose a first set of sensor connectors as a part of the sensorinterface to be connected to a first set of the sensors, and wherein thesecond mounting plate comprises a plurality of openings to expose asecond set of sensor connectors as a part of the sensor interface to beconnected to a second set of the sensors.
 10. The sensor unit of claim7, wherein the first mounting plate, the PCB, and the second mountingplate are attached to each other to form a U-shape tray.
 11. The sensorunit of claim 10, wherein the unit cover is molded into a single piecein a reversed U-shape form to complement the U-shape tray.
 12. Thesensor unit of claim 1, wherein the host interface comprises aperipheral component interconnect express (PCIe) interface.
 13. Thesensor unit of claim 1, wherein the sensor interface comprises anEthernet interface to be coupled with a LIDAR device or one or morecameras.
 14. The sensor unit of claim 1, wherein the sensor interfacecomprises a global positioning system (GPS) interface to be coupled toat least one of a GPS receiver and an IMU device.
 15. The sensor unit ofclaim 1, wherein the sensor interface comprises a control area network(CAN) interface to be coupled to throttle control logic, braking controllogic, and steering control logic of the ADV.
 16. An autonomous drivingsystem, comprising: a plurality of sensors mounted on a plurality oflocations of an autonomous driving vehicle (ADV); a host system having aperception module and a planning and control module, wherein theperception module is to perceive a driving environment surrounding theADV based on sensor data obtained from the sensors, and wherein theplanning and control module is to plan a path to autonomously drive theADV; and a sensor unit coupled to the plurality of sensors and the hostsystem, wherein the sensor unit comprises a unit tray including mountedtherein, a sensor interface coupled to the plurality of sensors mountedon the plurality of locations of the ADV, a host interface coupled tothe host system, and one or more processing modules coupled to thesensor interface to process sensor data received from the sensors; aunit base plate to receive the sensor unit tray deposited thereon; and aunit cover to cover the unit tray and the unit base plate, wherein theunit cover comprises a plurality of fins disposed on an external surfaceof the unit cover to form a heat sink integrated thereon to radiate heatgenerated and received from the processing modules without using a fans,wherein the unit cover is made of a heat conductive material.
 17. Theautonomous driving system of claim 16, wherein the unit cover furthercomprises a first set of one or more heat transfer arms disposed on aninternal surface of the unit cover, and wherein the heat transfer armsof the first set extend downwardly to receive the heat generated fromthe processing modules and to transfer the heat to the plurality of finsdisposed on the external surface.
 18. The autonomous driving system ofclaim 17, wherein when the unit cover is lowered down to cover the unittray, the heat transfer arms are positioned to substantially contactexternal surfaces of the sensor processing modules to receive andtransfer at least a portion of the heat generated by the sensorprocessing modules.
 19. The autonomous driving system of claim 18,wherein the one or more heat transfer arms are disposed on the internalsurface of the unit cover directly underneath at least a portion of thefins disposed on the external surface of the unit cover.
 20. Theautonomous driving system of claim 16, wherein the unit base platefurther comprises a second set of one or more heat transfer armsdisposed on an internal surface of the unit base plate, and wherein theheat transfer arms of the second set extend upwardly to receive the heatgenerated from the processing modules and to transfer the heat to thebase plate.